COMMUNITY
ELC children to benefit from outdoor learning in Oban and Mull Hobbit houses, campfires and water walls are just some of the fun outdoor learning activities that children will get to experience as a result of Argyll and Bute’s new Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) settings.
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Willowview in Oban, run by Argyll and Bute Council, welcomed its first children this week. The former day centre and care home has been transformed by landscape architects who were appointed by the council to create spaces for high activity; quiet time; socialising; investigation; creativity and nature. To meet this brief, the designers developed a ‘traditional’ play space with hard surfacing for ride-ons, marking and ball games, water play, sensory planting and a ‘stage’. This is a standalone area, but a path also leads up through a quiet space and green tunnel to a high level ‘hidden garden’ with playhouse, sandpit, slide and scramble net to the lower level and a sheltered look-out with a view across the roof-tops. The outdoor setting also has a natural area which offers future use for Forest School activities. In addition to the extensive external areas, there is a partially covered internal courtyard which forms the parent entrance and a sensory breakout space. Council-appointed architects also designed an outdoor area at Salen Primary School’s existing ELC unit which maximises the limited external space. Breakout areas have been developed as social spaces for science/experimental play, gardening, an outdoor classroom and sen-
| AUTUMN 2021
Mull & Iona Life issue 43.indd 26
05/10/2021 15:25:41
